Moving On
by LilyGhost
Summary: A new life is something to write home about ... or is it? As always, a Babe story.
1. Chapter 1

**Everything and everybody familiar belongs to Janet. The mistakes are solely mine.**

"Dear, Mom," I typed out, but that's all I have so far. This is harder than I thought. What do you say to the woman who gave birth to you, then pretty much gave up on you when you didn't turn out the way she'd planned?

I suppose I could start off by saying, "Sorry I was such a disappointment to you, but it's not like you were mother of the year all the time, either." Yet that sounded too bitter for my liking, and that isn't the tone I'm going for with this email. This is supposed to be an _'I'm happy, I hope you can be too,_ update, but apparently there are still too many unresolved issues and hurt feelings to make something like a progress report sound casual.

I blew out a breath and relaxed a little further into my chair, looking at the view from my spot on the patio. The water in the pool is almost the same shade of blue as the ocean beyond it and the sky above it. There's palm trees and flowers in bloom everywhere I look, a never-ending supply of warm weather, and plenty of peace and quiet that's only been interrupted by the squeals of a happy child. When a few drops of pool water hit me, I smiled. Not every area of my life is perfect, but this one definitely is.

It got even better when Ranger left Julie in the pool and came over to sit with me. Though my favorite bikini is still completely dry, I didn't hesitate to scoot forward so he could sit behind me on the chaise. His legs settled along the outside of mine and an arm closed around my waist, pulling me back against him. I shivered both from his proximity and the slight chill of his damp skin.

"You've been staring at that screen for ten minutes, Babe, yet you haven't done much else."

"I know. I keep trying to figure out what I should say to her, and just when I think I'm ready to type, I go blank."

He rested one big hand on my bare stomach and slid the other into my hair, kissing the side of my neck to soften his words.

"Maybe because there's really nothing to say," he told me.

His technique is an effective one, since his mouth on me is always distracting.

"She didn't leave much for me to say, did she?" I asked, looking for a little justification to absolve some of the guilt I know I shouldn't feel.

"To me, telling you that you shouldn't come back to the Burg until you have a wedding ring on your finger, doesn't sound like you owe her a damn thing."

I hooked an elbow around his updrawn knee, sighed, then tipped my head back to settle on that comfy spot between his neck and his shoulder.

"I thought she'd give in by now."

"Your mother wants back in the power seat. She's waiting for you to make the first move. It's up to you if you want to risk her upsetting the life you've made now."

That's the problem. I feel stupid for wanting to make contact with my mom - which would most likely disrupt the good thing I've got by opening a door that maybe should've been bolted shut years ago. Yet not speaking to her at all also feels wrong.

" _Hey, Dad Number 2! Stephanie!_ " Julie shouted from the middle of the huge infinity pool. " _Are you guys coming in!?_ "

I could feel Ranger looking at me. "Are we?" He asked.

Spending time with Julie has given me a different perspective on my relationship with my mother. Ranger has said that I've already proven my loyalty to, and my love for, his daughter. And _I_ know I'd go through the Scrog ordeal all over again - or something even worse - without having to think twice about it if it meant saving or protecting Julie. The kicker is, she's not even my kid - biologically or matrimonially - which made my mother's growing indifference towards me all the more confusing.

Sure ... Grandma gets fed up with my mom, but you can tell she loves her only child. Some days, I still question whether my mom actually loves me or only tolerates me because she's been told she has to. The fact that she gave me an ultimatum and hasn't once tried to reach me to take it back or even attempt to resume the grin and bear it relationship we've developed, had me thinking that nothing is ever going to matter to my mother as much as appearances or outside opinions.

I guess I have the answer to my earlier question ... I shouldn't say _anything_ to my mom. And that conclusion gave me an answer to the question Ranger just asked me. I put aside my link to the outside world and stood, holding out my hand for him to take.

"Yep," I told him. "Last one in buys dinner." And I made a run for it.

He caught up to me in two long-legged strides, and then tossed me into the water I'd been staring at earlier, close to where Julie was busy laughing at us. I floated to the surface just in time to watch Ranger's perfect body make a perfect dive in after me. I know I made the right decision, not only with not sending my mom an email, but by moving to Miami with Ranger in the first place. I _do_ have family here ... despite what my mom continues to believe.


	2. Chapter 2

**All characters are Janet's. The mistakes are mine. Warnings for a teeny bit of smut.**

 **Chapter 2**

"Why do you look so sad when you're not with us?" Julie asked me.

I had stopped on my way out of the master bedroom to look out the second story window of the house. I turned my head towards the room Ranger and I made sure Julie had here. She was standing in her doorway with her thin arms crossed over her chest, the fingers of her right hand toying with the end of her long ponytail.

"I'm not sad. I love living here with your dad and getting to see you almost every day."

She gave me a look that reminded me so much of Ranger's, it made my chest feel tight.

"RangeDad told me how you try to avoid questions you don't really want to answer," she said. "It's okay if you don't."

"I'm not being evasive this time. I just don't know _how_ to answer it."

"I'm not a little kid anymore. You can talk to me about stuff."

That had me smiling. She passed 'little kid' eons ago, but her relationship with Rachel is nothing like mine and my mother's, and I'm not sure she'll understand why two supposed _adults_ can't call a truce and just agree to disagree to make everyone else's life easier.

"You're more mature than I'll ever be, Jules. Your age isn't the issue. I guess you could say the problem is that my mother and I don't know how to talk to each other anymore - not like you and your mom - and sometimes I still feel bad about it."

"I heard you and Ranger talking about her being upset that you moved here."

"Yeah, that's part of it. Have you and your mom discussed what you'd like to be doing in the future?" I asked her, following her back into her pink and gray room.

She'd personally picked out the colors for her bedroom, and the combination looked so pretty and pastelly, I crave Easter candy every time I step into it.

"A little. Mom said I can do and achieve anything I want ... as long as I'm willing to work hard for it."

"Sounds like something Ranger would say."

"He's told me that, too. He also said that he'd help me however he could."

"He will bust his butt for someone he believes in." I took a breath as I struggled to put my thoughts into words. "Parents are supposed to want what's right for their kids ..."

"And Mrs. Plum doesn't want you here with me?"

This is the tricky part. Maybe I shouldn't have agreed to pizza for dinner, then Ranger would be here to say the right thing at the perfect time.

"Even before I was your age, my mom had a certain life in mind for me," I started. "And leaving Trenton was definitely _not_ her idea of the right move. She didn't take the news well. She'll probably come around eventually, but it'll take time."

"So you're sad because she really hurt your feelings?"

"They _do_ feel a little hurt right now, but I have a bunch of other things that have made me happier than I ever was in Trenton, so it evens things out. I'm happy that you and Ranger have gotten to know and love each other. And I'm so glad that we get to see more of you ... that your parents are okay with you spending time with us here."

"They are. You know, I used to feel bad and be angry at Ranger for giving me up when my mom married my dad, but she explained that he wasn't staying away from me because he didn't like or want me. It was really just his way of protecting me and trying to keep me safe."

The respect I already had for Rachel tripled in that moment. She had no reason to let Ranger off the emotional hook aside from the fact that she loves her daughter too much to hold a grudge against the man who helped create her.

"Can I tell you a secret?" I asked Julie.

"Yeah," she said, her dark eyes bright with excitement at what I might be sharing with her. "What is it?"

"Your dad, Ranger I mean, wanted to move down here for the sole purpose of being a bigger part of your life."

" _Really?_ I thought he wanted to leave Trenton for you."

"Nope. He was the one who brought up the subject of moving. I just jumped at the chance he gave me. _You're_ the reason we're here. And I want you to know ... both of us are glad we are."

She smiled, but seemed at a loss for words herself. And when Ranger came back with our dinner, I couldn't help but notice that she seemed to have relaxed even more around him. Looks like you're good for something after all, Stephanie, I told myself. It doesn't matter that my mom will never see it.

Despite what I had told Julie, I know it'll take a lot longer than a while for my mom to admit to being in the wrong here, but mine and Julie's discussion had me seeing that I can't waste any more time thinking about what I've lost ... when I've really gained so much in return.

After the pizza, spicy fries, and Ranger's grilled chicken salad were gone, I hugged Julie goodbye with the promise of picking her up for lunch on Friday if Rachel and Ron don't already have plans for her day off. I stayed at the front door until I could no longer see the taillights of Ranger's Porsche.

I locked up, cleaned the few dishes that were left in the kitchen sink, and then made my way upstairs, once again running my eyes over the house that I still can't believe I live in. Everything in relation to Ranger is excessive, including his building-buying budget, but I didn't want him investing a huge chunk of money in something bigger than what we actually needed.

The open floor plan of the beachy-looking, terra cotta-colored, tile-roofed home, made the three bedroom, two and a half bath, place feel spacious without actually having unnecessary space. I'd wanted a _home_ for us, not a villa.

Ranger didn't seem to mind what I chose if it fit with his basic requirements. I noticed after we got all our stuff unpacked and the rooms furnished, the moderate square footage of the place isn't bad at all because we actually like being in close proximity to each other. And there _is_ a pool and patio area, plus two good-sized balconies off the front and back of the house if either of us require alone time.

If we need something else to do or see, the beach isn't too far away. I already have the postcard-worthy picture picked out to send Mary Lou in January when she'll be ass deep in snow while I'm walking around here in short sleeves. It's mean I know, but what are best friends for?

I killed a few minutes swapping my shorts and t-shirt for boxers and a tank top, and stood on the bedroom's balcony, leaning over the railing and going over what brought me here. I've always known that Ranger is a man of action, but I didn't fully understand what that meant.

One particularly long and annoying day set his plans into motion sooner than he'd intended. I was cranky because I'd been stopped at the Shop n Bag by three different Burgers that day wanting to know if I got myself knocked up by the bounty hunter, and if that's why Joe wasn't speaking to me.

"I haven't spoken to Joe," I'd told each one in the middle of the dairy, condiment, and bread aisles, "because we broke up and I heard he's been working undercover somewhere. Us not talking has _nothing_ at all to do with my uterus ... which is EMPTY."

The looks they shot me made it clear that they thought I was lying my baby-carrying ass off. And by the time I got back to Ranger's apartment, less than ten minutes later, Grandma was already calling.

"Mrs. Apperstein just called and told your mother and I that you and Hotstuff are having twins ... a boy and a girl on the first go round. Why didn't you tell us? Your mother has the ironing board out and is starchin' Frank's shorts.

I blew out a frustrated breath. "I didn't tell you because it's _not true_. Sometimes I really hate living in Trenton," I'd admitted to Grandma Mazur.

It took a full two weeks after that for even my own family to believe I wasn't pregnant. And Ranger was getting increasingly irritated on my behalf. He doesn't give a shit about rumors or Burg gossips, but he didn't like me being harassed daily for something that wasn't even true. He didn't tell me outright what he'd been thinking, he just waited until we sat down to dinner the day after my mom finally conceded that I'd been telling the truth about my non-pregnancy to hand me photos of three different houses.

"Pick one," he'd ordered me.

"For what?"

"Which one of these houses can you see yourself living in?"

"I can barely picture myself living _here_ , and you want me to now play choose-a-home in ...?"

"Miami."

My eyes had flown open when I realized that specific location meant that he was serious.

"You want us to move to Miami?"

"Did you or did you not tell your grandmother that you hated living in Trenton?" He counter-questioned.

" _Sometimes_ ," I said. "I only hate it here _sometimes_."

"So you're not interested in starting over somewhere new ... someplace warmer?"

I had my mouth open to say an immediate no, that I like my life here and don't need a different one, but something stopped me. Ranger's used to living on the run, he _would_ pick up and move if that would make my life easier, yet I had a hinky feeling that this suggestion had just as much to do with him as it did me.

"What about Rangeman and the guys here?"

"Tank will move into my office and oversee this branch until replacements for us both are chosen, then he'll join us in Miami. I'll be in daily contact with him until he's officially a Floridian, so Trenton's Rangeman building won't be closing its doors despite Bobby, Cal, and Junior already asking for transfers. My gut is telling me that they aren't the only ones who are going to be requesting them."

I paused in my house perusal and looked at him. That was all well and good, but I knew there was more.

"What's really going on?" I'd asked, putting the pictures down next to my plate.

"Julie has asked me to visit more often ..."

Now his quick response time to what I'd seen as just another Burg-bother made a lot more sense.

"You want to be closer to Julie, don't you?"

"Your relationship with your parents has made me rethink a few of my decisions. Having Julie come right out and ask for more of my time ..."

"Makes you want to give it to her," I said, nodding.

I couldn't love the man anymore than I already did, but him wanting to be there for Julie had made me all gooey inside. Although I love Miami, I probably would've needed a solid year of convincing to get me to move there permanently. Knowing I'd be the one preventing he and Julie from getting closer, made the decision to pack up and head out a lot easier ... and a hell of a lot quicker.

"This place looks perfect for us," I'd told Ranger, handing him the photo that was on the top of the small stack.

Forty-eight hours later, we were telling everyone _'Bye ... but we'll be back_ '.

My mom seemed like the only one who wasn't thrilled about us coming back to visit.

"You've already moved in with Ranger without the benefit of marriage, which by the way led to all those pregnancy rumors. Now you want to move half a country away with him? What are you going to do in _Florida_ of all places?"

Ranger's fingers tightened around mine as we sat in my parents' living room. I had warned him that the conversation probably wouldn't go well, yet he still wanted to be with me for it. As much as I appreciated his support, it was my fight so I shook my head at him when I'd sensed he was seconds away from telling my mother where to go ... and it wouldn't be to Miami with us.

"You know Ranger already has an established Rangeman branch in Miami, so I'll essentially be doing the same thing _there_ that I have been _here_ , with the added benefits of no snow and no Vinnie."

Her eyes went to Ranger even though she was still speaking to me. "What happens when he gets tired of being a father and decides he needs more excitement in his life, and wants to move again ... without you this time? Did you even think about that, Stephanie? You know next to nothing about him, except that he's good at disappearing whenever the mood strikes. You could be left alone in Miami, in a home _he_ paid for after taking care of _his_ daughter, while he goes off to do God knows what. You'll have no family there to support you."

"What would be the difference? Because it sounds like I have no family supporting me _here_ ," I'd said through clenched teeth.

I knew my mom didn't approve of - or really believe in - what Ranger and I had/have, but I never seriously thought she had such a low opinion of him, me, and us as a couple.

Ranger didn't stay quiet at that point. "Mrs. Plum, I had my lawyer put the house in _Stephanie's_ name so she can do whatever the hell she wants with it. This house isn't an issue for anyone except you. I asked her to come with me because I won't leave here without her. I want her in Miami _for_ _me_ , not for what she can _do_ for me there."

Suddenly I was the one squeezing fingers. "Ranger ..."

"I'm fine, Babe, but I'm not finished. "I'd never use Stephanie as a way of securing free childcare," he'd said to my mom in a tone I'd never heard before. "Nor would she ever agree to that if she thought that's what I was after. She has her own things to do when we get down there. She won't be 'taking care of my daughter', she'll be spending time with Julie only when she chooses to."

"Which will be as often as I can, Mom. I guess I like someone else's child more than you like yours. Julie is an amazing kid, but she _has_ parents ... three pretty great ones. I'm not hired help being paid to relocate in order to raise her. I'm moving to a city I enjoy, with the guy I happen to love ... someplace that will be better for us both. And now that I understand how you really feel about us ... we can't leave town fast enough to suit me."

"Do you have any idea what people are going to say when they hear that you left the state?"

"I don't care. And neither should you."

"Do my feelings mean nothing to you? Your father and I will be left behind to explain this. We'll be the laughing stocks of the Burg."

"Why the hell should I care about _your_ feelings when you obviously have no problem peeing all over mine?" I'd asked her. "This isn't about _them_ or _you_. It's about _my_ life and where I want to live it, which will be in Miami now."

Her mouth slammed shut so hard, I heard her molars crash together. "Well, then ... if you're choosing _his_ family over your own, and aren't in the least concerned about sparing us the whispers and knowing glances we'll be subjected to, maybe you shouldn't come back here until you're properly married. Maybe by the time you two decide to do the right thing, gossip will have died down some."

Ranger and I didn't get married, though we have discussed it once or twice before and after that, but not because it was expected of us. I hadn't felt the need to go back to the Burg except to stop at the bonds office and tell everyone I was outta there. And Ranger and I left Trenton two days later. I did speak to my dad briefly before we did. He apologized for my mom, claimed she hadn't meant what she said, but he couldn't get her to offer us an apology, and he definitely couldn't change my mind about leaving Jersey, so he didn't know what to do with either of us.

No surprise there. While Val and I were growing up, he was always gone during the day, and he usually walked in the door and right into the middle of whatever punishment/grounding my mother had been in the process of giving me. And in the years since, he hasn't found refereeing our arguments any easier.

He did tell me to call him before we left the Rangeman building, though, and again after we touched down, which was a little surprising. I thought he'd leave all communication to my mom once she 'got out of her snit', but he waited patiently for my promise to contact him. Grandma Mazur was a whole other matter. When she came home from bingo and heard about the fight and that Ranger and I were leaving, she called me immediately after.

" _You are such a pip!_ " She'd told me then. "Good for you for getting out. Now put that Cuban Cutie on the horn."

I'd handed my cell to Ranger with my eyebrows raised, waiting to hear what she wanted.

"Expect it to be dropped off in the morning," he'd told Grandma, then disconnected.

"What did Grandma ask you for?"

"She demanded a round-trip ticket to Miami. First class."

"Round trip?"

"She didn't specify, but I feel better with her having one that comes with a guaranteed _return to Trenton_ date."

We were able to postpone the inevitable invasion of two - Ranger got a second ticket because Valerie really wanted to come with Grandma - until we had our place feeling livable, but our Burg-free days are numbered. I know Mary Lou will only stay away for so long and Ranger being the smart man he is, knows that you can't keep relatives or best friends away indefinitely, had arranged for an apartment on the fourth floor of this city's Rangeman building to be left unoccupied so anyone back home who wanted to visit would have a place to stay.

The only person who's not making vacation plans - besides my mother - is Joe. He agreed with my mom as I knew he would. He's the only one who dislikes Ranger as much, if not more, than my mother does. Plus ... I may have gone off on him before getting out of Dodge when he decided to be an asshole by implying that either I was just trying to put distance between him and me because I was having second thoughts about my guy choice ... or that our hasty exit may be due to Ranger having to run from something or someone.

As usual, Ranger cared little about what Joe did or said. "It doesn't matter what he or anyone else thinks, Babe. We made this decision for us, no one else. And our reasons for it are our own."

I could always count on him to put things and emotions into perspective. It's been almost a month since we left Jersey, and I haven't regretted a second of my time here. And the reason for that just got back from dropping Julie off at home.

"I knew I'd find you out here," Ranger told me, after walking through the house, our bedroom, and out onto the balcony off of it.

"That's because you know the bedroom view is what made me choose this house over the other two."

"Julie's worried about you," he said, putting his hands next to mine on the wrought iron railing so he could press the front of his body against my back.

"Crap. I was trying to reassure her, not make her worry more. Apparently no one has told that girl that _she's_ actually the kid here. She shouldn't be concerned about the mental health of the adults around her."

"She loves you, Babe. And she wants you to be happy."

"No problems there, then. Even if I didn't get to go to sleep with you every night, waking up to this," I said, nodding to the palm tree-framed sunset happening in front of us, "would make me _very_ happy."

He knows I still get a couple ' _if only_ ' moments, but he'll wait until I'm ready to discuss them before he presses the issue. Which isn't now, because I'm in the mood to do something other than talk. We were both busy catching scumbags today, then the call came in that Rachel agreed when Julie asked to come over for dinner. We're alone for the first time since our poolside breakfast this morning, and I don't want to waste this opportunity by going over my family crap again. I turned in his arms and slid my own around his waist.

"Are you trying to distract me?" He asked, moving even closer so that my upper half was bent slightly back over the railing, which happened to push my lower body tightly into his.

Ranger never makes a move without considering the outcome of it first.

"Yup. Is it working?"

"Yes. But this isn't over."

"It isn't, but we can pause it for now, can't we?"

He didn't answer. He just lowered his head and took my mouth in a kiss that had my bare toes curling. My mouth opened for his and I welcomed the feel of his tongue sliding deliciously against mine. He can easily make me forget everything around me and that's exactly what I need right now. I'd like to get him naked and in me as soon as I can manage it, but I know that will depend on him.

It became clear that he had driving me crazy on his mind. His fingers sank into my curls and he held my mouth to his as he walked us into the room and up to the bed. He didn't even take time to get my pj's completely off, he just yanked my boxers off and pushed up my tank top to get at what we both agree are key sensation spots. His mouth returned to mine, then my breasts and my belly button received a few tongue strokes before he got down to serious business on parts south of them.

I whimpered, shifted my hips, and even tried to pull his head away from me by his ears when his mouth applied more suction and his tongue got even more active. My eyes rolling back in my head and me whispering something about God, were the only things that seemed to get Ranger to release his grip on my hips, but that was only temporarily. He quickly adjusted his body between my thighs and slid into the place that seemed made for him. I'm sure he was pleased to note that the whimpering and ecstasy eyerolls began all over again.

My mother, Joe, and the whole freakin' Burg, can think what they want, but I know there are things that can never be put into words. The love, peace, and contentment, Ranger gives me on a _second_ ly - not _hourly_ \- basis can't be adequately explained to anyone not lucky enough to experience it.


End file.
